Dominium Trilogy: Book Two: Currently Unnamed
by Xandra Z
Summary: Sequal to Slayer High, the story continues where it left of. First 4 chapters only.
1. Default Chapter

**_Written by: Xandra & Ryan _**

Book One could be found here: , or on my site. 

****

**_Chapter One: When the Dust Settles_**

            Missing.  That's all they could think about. Slayers were missing. Fiona was running around the dinning hall with a clipboard taking down the names of the students being brought in by Faith and Clem. They were finding and bringing everyone to the dinning hall. At least the girls were waking up. Fiona glanced over at the remaining sleepers. Evan and Matt had started to get up earlier but she made them rest some more. Xander got up but found he could go no farther then his chair. Willow did a little better, she was convinced she could help search but only made it to the door. Pike just decided to lay there. He fell back asleep at the table. They were lined up on the floor; the tables had been pushed out of the way. At least they were all right; only Curtis had been really injured. He was being taken care of but they were thinking of taking him to the hospital. When Ona saw Giles began to stir, she went to him. Robin began to wake as well so Faith went to him. So was Addison.

            "Hey there." Fiona said kneeling down putting her hand gently on his chest.

            "What happened? What time is it?" Giles asked as he coughed. He tried to sit up but needed her help.

            "It's almost noon. Someone attacked the school; it's was around 3:30 I think. They knocked us out with some gas, still not sure what. They cleaned the air so after we were knocked out we were able to breathe again. Clem was the first to wake up. Then us, the slayers. Then my kids and Andrew. They've fallen back to sleep." She paused, she was shaking a little, but she took a deep breath and continued, "Sophie is missing, as is at least 15 of our students. Bridget too." She held back not wanting to say the last part, "Also- Buffy can't seem to find Dawn either."

            "Oh god." He said and she moved a chair so he could lean back on it. He was still very groggy. 

            "She could still be here. I thought they took Evan earlier but we found her in one of the classrooms." Giles nodded and looked around. The slayers were sitting at the tables; they were scared, he didn't blame them one bit. Faith helped Robin over to a chair and went back out to look for students.

            It wasn't too much later Buffy stormed back in. "I can't find her!" She said practically in tears. She went to Giles, who was now able to stand. "I don't even know where she was during the attack. Did you see her?"

            "She was with us," Matt said sitting up. "We went down the other way, behind the classrooms, to lock the school down."

            "Bridget and Dawn were with us." Evan continued. She and Matt were leaning on each other for support. "I had a vision, in my sleep. So I got them up first, Matt fell asleep on our couch. We ran into Bridget on our way to lock down the school but they were already in. I was only able to hit the alarm."

            "Evan ran ahead, but they were behind us. The soldiers. Dawn, Bridget and me were knocked out." He shook his head, trying to remember. "Evan had ran too far ahead, I don't think they noticed her." Matt and Evan looked as if they were about to cry.

Fiona went to her children and hugged them tightly. "It'll be okay." She told them.

             "Everyone in the house is here. They took her!" she pleaded to Giles. She looked like she was about to go into shock, again.

            "Calm down, Buffy, relax." Willow said stumbling over. "We'll find her. We have to find all of them. They were obviously after Slayers. We can find them."  

"Why would they take her? She's not a Slayer." 

"Things didn't go according to plan," Xander spoke up. "They looked like military, they planned to gas us all in our sleep, take some of the girls. They would all be in bed; they could find the ones they wanted. Look around barely any girls over 15 taken. But the alarm was hit; they had to move fast and everyone fighting. They took who they saw."

"I agree." Pike said from his place on the floor. "They weren't expecting us to wake up."

            "Do we know who 'they' are?" Vi asked from her place with the Slayers. "I mean I thought no one could know about this place. How could they find us?" No one answered her and the room remained silent. 

            "Hey Guys!" Faith called, reentering the Hall. "Look what I found!" She was holding a weapon in her hands, smirking. Faith went to Buffy to give her a closer look. Buffy took it. It was an Initiative weapon. The tazer gun that Professor Walsh had had backfire to try to get her killed.  

            "That's…" Xander could talk he just got up and grabbed it, "Riley?"

            "Oh, dear lord." Giles sighed.

            "The Initiative!" Willow gasped. "I better check the computer." 

            "Damn it!" Buffy yelled and walked away from the group. "That bastard!" She yelled again. She shut her eyes, hold back her tears. "How could I have trusted him?" She said to herself.

            "What the Initiative?" Pike and Fiona asked.

***************

            When Sophia Karameros began to wake, she was caught in the stage where she was awake but not conscious of the where she was and what she was doing there. And she most certainly didn't know she was locked in a cell eighteen floors below the surface in a Military base in the mountains. She opened her eyes. The room was cold, white and sterile. There was a bright light that made her eyes hurt; in fact she hurt all over. Like she had the flu.

She sat up and looked around her. She was on a hard cot made of plastic and bolted into the wall. Besides the bed there was only a toilet and a shelf in the small cell. On the shelf was a pair of white scrubs. She got up and went to the glass wall, which was the door to her prison. She could see more cells around her. 

She saw Dawn lying on the bed in the cell across from her. Sophie looked to right, five more on that side of the hall and the same on her own side. Of the girls she saw she was the only one awake. She looked at the walls between the cell doors; each cell was given a number label and seemed to be showing the vital signs of each the occupants. To the left were more glass doors, leading into a security office. There were four visible guards, in military uniforms. She didn't know which branch. She kept looking and saw another door labeled: LAB #4. Wherever they were they were in trouble.

"Help!" she heard someone say a few cells down. Then there was pounding on the glass.

            "Hey, this is Sophie, can anybody hear me?" She called.

            "Yeah," the same voice replied right away. She knew the voice, it was Lee. She was fourteen, from Vermont and the youngest of four with her older sisters being identical triplets. She looked just like her sisters too. The same long curly hair and face, like they were almost like another part of the set. They were close they visited the school often. She was very good at sensing Vampires but was not as good a fighter. She looked around she could see her. "Where are we?" 

            "I don't know, Lee. Are you alright where are you?"

            "I think I'm okay, kind feel sick." There was a pause, "I'm in a cell, where do you think I am?"

            "I meant in the room. I'm by the entrance. Who are you across from?" Lee replied.

            "Penny." Sophia looked around. Penny was on the other wall, all the way at the other end.

            "It will be okay," she said to calm her. "Who else is here?"

            "Not sure. I can only see Dawn, Enid, Shannon, Lizzy T. and Penny, but not who's next to us." Sophie turn back to her cell looking for something she could use to break down the door.

"Cory, Sara and Tess." a new voice answered. It was Shannon; she was two cells down from Dawn. "What the hell happened?" Shannon sounded scared, like she did when she talked to Sophie about her run in with Caleb from last year.

Sophie didn't answer she started pounding on the glass with her fists, trying to break it. It barely vibrated when she hit it and she could tell it had to be at least 2 inches thick. Also only after a little bit of pounding her hand ached, she stopped and made a fist. Muscle relaxants. She brought her hand to her neck, she could still feel the pressure form where they injected her with it. She began to pound on the cell door again, this time because she was trying to get the guards attention. She was not going anywhere not until the drug wore off. 

After a few minutes it looked like it worked. Two of the guards escorted in two officers. Sophie wished she had paid more attention to Xander when he talked about the Army movies. The two Officers came to her cell, she stopped her racket. 

"Please keep it down." Said the taller one with the "gold bird" on his uniform.

"Let me out of here!" She screamed.

"I'm sorry, Miss Karameros, we cannot do that." Said the shorter one with the gold maple on his uniform with a caduceus next to it. He was a doctor. He was short, in his forties and had a graying hair.

"I think you can." Sophia threaten, trying to rattle them.

"I think what Dr. Moseily meant was were not going to do that." Said the taller man, she read his name tag "Cl. Johanson" (NO IDEA)

"Why did you take us?" She asked, she tried moved herself into a threatening-like position leaning her arms against the glass glaring down at them. She was in luck, they were much shorter than her.

"Because you're Slayers." Was all he said, and he turned away.

They started to go to Shannon's cell but Sophie called out to them again. "Get us out of here!" Her captors just ignored her and they had the guards open Shannon's cell door.  They held her back and injected something into her neck, they started to take her out of the room even with all the girls yelling. All the girls except Dawn,  was awake now.l

"Where are you taking her?" Sophie yelled. The guards left with Dr. Moseily, Johanson stopped to talk to her.

"Don't worry about that." Then in a condescending tone he adds. "Please, keep it down and stop pounding on the glass. If you don't," he pointed to the wrist band on her arm and then to the dark line about an inch thick that ran around from the ceiling to the floor and back up again, "we'll turn that on. It will send a shock to you every time you try to cross that line. That goes to your girls too, we can always make anything much more worse for them." 

She didn't care and pounded again. "Afisemas Na Pame!" She screamed at him in her native Greek, as he began to leave again.

"Oh also, don't think the relaxant is gonna wear off anytime soon. We barrowed the formula from an old friend of yours." 

            "Aregames!" She yelled at him again as he left.

************

            Back at the school, the girls were allowed to go back to their rooms. Twenty people were taken including Dawn, Bridget and Sophia. Fiona had read the list. Cory, Enid, Penny, Lee, Sara, Elizabeth T., Carrie, Quinn, Shannon, Deborah, Sidney, Jean, Tess, Christia, Adena, Miranda, Shavonne,--what were they going to tell parents. Most of them were fifteen and under.

            Giles declared a CSW meeting and they moved into the library to talk. The only student allowed where Matt and Evan. The topic was the Initiative. Buffy, Willow, Xander , Giles they each took turns telling the story. Riley, Spike, Adam, Oz, the list went on.

            "You've got to be kidding me." Fiona said. "How could they be so arrogant!" She was outraged.

            "I can." Pike said, "I worked with those asses for years, sounds like a stupid thing they would do." Addison just kept quiet, she felt very out of her element. All this time she had been worried about the girls education, she never thought something like this could happen. She was playing the self-blame game too.

            "And they took our girls?" Fiona still not believing this, began to pass around the room, she stood and turned around to look at Giles, "You knew someone was on to this place, that why you started getting strict with the girls."

            "I was approached, when I was in town, he was asking me too many questions. About what school was like, the staff, the students. He just seem to know too much." He sighed. "That's why I went off the handle when the girls were noticed." He explained.

            "It's my fault." Buffy said taking her seat. "I saw Riley in Cleveland. When I first got there. I trusted him, told him everything." She was disgusted with herself.

            "It's not your fault." Giles tried to calm her.

            "It's entirely my fault!" She shouted, "I told him everything!" Pike went to her and put his arms around her. She couldn't hold back her fear for Dawn's safety, as well as the other girls. 

            "Were going to find them." Pike said and they all agreed, they were all tired and worried. They needed to rest but they knew that would not come easy. They sat there in silence for a long moment more, it was ended abruptly when Hortenzia ran into the room.

            "Hey you guys, we've been picking up calls from the field," She said almost out of breath, "you better come quick. Other Slayers are going missing too."

End chapter one.


	2. Chapter Two: Under the Ice

**_Chapter 2: Under the Ice_**

            The guards had been in and out most of the day, taking each girl in one by one. Shannon had been brought back in tears earlier that afternoon. Now Penny was taken away. The other girls started to make noise and Colonel Johansson paid Sophie another visit. "You haven't been doing your job." He taunted her. "You're their consoler, consol them."

            "I can't do that from in here. How am I supposed to keep them calm if I can even see them?" She responded. She had tried to prepare herself for what he might do, she didn't expect him to order the security station guard to open her cell door.

            "You can have free range of this block to consol your students." He told her, Sophie cautiously left her cell. He grabbed her hand and pushed her into the wall. "Don't touch anything and if you step out of line…" he didn't have to finish it. 

            Sophie had gone around to all the girls, trying to calm them down through the glass doors. The guards were keeping a good eye on her the entire time. The girls were tough, they were being trained to be. Shannon wouldn't say much about her time out of the cell. They were mostly concerned about Dawn right now. Dawn hadn't woken up at all yet. Sophie had been keeping an eye on Dawns vitals monitors--they were dropping. Every time she would try to ask one of the doctors about it they wouldn't answer her. 

            Sophie sat down outside Shannon's cell, Shannon had fallen into a crying fit one the floor. She kept muttering something about someone named Caleb and kept touching the scar on her neck. Sophie was just trying to keep her calm, but was having trouble. There was a beep from Dawn's monitor and she stood up. Dr. Moseily was coming back in. He went straight to Dawn's monitor and didn't even give her a look.

            On instinct Sophie lunged for him. She didn't need her slayer strength to fight, she had spent years doing it the old fashioned way. He barely struggled, she always had the upper hand. She ripped the pen out of his hand and pushed him up against the doors to the security room. She brought the pen up to his neck. The girls cheered her on.

            By this time everyone in the outer room was on alert many were pointing there weapons at the glass. "It's bullet proof." Said Col. Johansson, to his soldier quietly. 

            "Let us go! All of us. Now. I'll kill him." She was ready to as well. Johansson came right up to the glass and their eyes meant, he was not worried at all but Sophie knew she wasn't either.

            "I believe you, but you won't." He turned to one of the soldiers. Sophie watched the solder go into the lab only to emerge a few moments later with Penny. Johansson grabbed her harshly keeping her at arms length and took out his side arm. He lifted the weapon to press against her golden locks and the 12 year-old began to cry. "If you kill him, I'll kill her. We have plenty more 'Slayers'.  Were not going to run out.  The choice is yours." There was a stand off, for a few minutes Sophie didn't back down.

            Sophia let the doctor go and took a step back. She obeyed the order to drop the pen and go back into her cell. Once it was locked and the field was turned on, Johansson lowered his weapon from Penny's head. Penny tried to hit him but he used the butt of he's weapon to knock her in the head. The little Asian girl fell to the floor. "Take her back to the Lab." He ordered.

            Sophie went and sat back down on the bed. She fought her tears back entirely; she couldn't let the girls see her cry. She needed to be strong for them they needed to keep hope. She was already losing it. She couldn't help thinking that maybe Penny might be better of dead, than living through what they were doing to the girls. 

            She snapped out of her own thoughts when Dr. Moseily entered Dawn's cell. She watched them closely. Dawn looked so sick and weak. Sophie stood again when the doctor injected her with something. Immediately her vitals changed again. Her pulse began to race and her heart was being to beat erratically. 

Another doctor comes in quickly after that and injects her with something else. She began to stabilize again. Sophie can hear the two doctors taking. "She's only the second with bad reactions to the formula." Said doctor number two. "Could this be a problem with the other?"

"Not likely, I read the reports on this formula it would be doing any lasting harm to the Slayers. It could be just an allergy." Moseily said looking over the charts. "We'll find a the way around it."

Sophie's mind went through everything she learned when she became a Watcher. She had read all the reports of the Slayers rights of passage ceremony and remember most of it because of how she fought against it. She remembers reading the reports of when they first develop the formula, they couldn't test it on anyone but the Slayer, the Slayers could handle the strong relaxants and surprises they would overwhelm any normal system. Dawn and the other non-slayer they took were in serious trouble if the formula wasn't perjured from there system soon- But then she stopped, there was another, another woman they confused for a Slayer. All she could think was it would have to have been Evan.

"Just write down that subject 19 and 5 are reacting badly. They both had head injures when coming in." 

"You have to get her off that stuff now!" Sophie yelled. They must still think she and the other one were Slayers. They ignored her. "You have to stop. She's not a slayer you can check the school records." She demanded as they began to leave, "Her name is Dawn Summers! She's not a Slayer! You've got to stop using the formula."

"Why?" The other doctor said, "So she can get stronger and break the rest of you out of here." 

They knew too much to not know there were non-Slayers girls at that school. "You have to help her!" Sophie said getting to close to her cell door. She got thrown back with a shock. It was surprisingly more powerful than she thought. She stayed on the floor, letting her mind go through the effects of the drug on non-slayers. If she wasn't treated soon her heart could stop. She had to do something.

*********

            At the school, by early evening, things were finally beginning to get organized, everyone had a job to keep themselves busy. Xander and Pike were cleaning up the halls.  The girls had woke up, immediately grabbed the weapons stashed around the school and fought back the intruders. Many things got broken but in the process of cleaning up the mess, Xander noticed a bug placed under one of the lights. They searched the rest of the school and found about a dozen in key places in the school. Willow performed a spell that shorted them out and was able to protect their cell phones signal but not the phone-lines so no one was allowed to use them. Fiona and Evan were sent along to located and remove anything that could still be left at the school. When they gave up looking they headed off to the Library to check on Willow and Matt.

            Willow and Matt were on the computer look at all of the information that was downloaded and making sure there was no spying in the mainframe. It turned out that Matt was quite skilled when it came to computers. 

            "The computer's clean." Mathew informed his Aunt, when she came to check on the progress. "They got all the field info for the States. They now know where all the slayers are and who's training them."

            "Makes sense." She looked at her list, she had just got from Giles. "All the Slayers they grabbed were in the database too. The ones in the field anyway."

            "This isn't right" Willow said, distractedly as she reentered passwords into the computer. "I should have made this a lot more difficult to get into. For all we know they got the names of the Slayers under twelve. Those kids could be in danger-" She dreaded. 

            "I've been taking to other field slayer." She held up her cell. "They keeping an eye on the others. Some of them are coming here as reinforcement."

            "How many?" Matt asked.

            "We called ten." Evan answered.

            "I hope that will be enough."  

            "Me too."

--- 

            In another part of the school, Giles, Addison and Robin were going over what to tell parents. They had already put out coded announcements over slayer channels telling them to lie low for a while, if they want to come to the school, but the parents of students were the harder problems. The majority of the girls taken were under fifteen, with there parents most of them made weekly calls one way or the other.

            "Well I guess it would depend if their parents knew they were slayers or not on what we tell them." Robin suggested.

            "Well of course." Giles said, handing them the files of the missing girls. "Lets sort though these and see which parents would be more responsive to the truth."

            "Then no matter what we do were left with three situations." Addison spoke up. "One: We inform all the parents of the truth. Two: We wait until the parents call, then tell them the truth. Third: They call we lie to them and hope when we find their daughters the matter will be under control." They were silent.

            "I don't know about the rest of you but option three sounds pretty good." Robin spoke up. Giles and Addison nodded. "For the proposed lie, I say there on a field trip to an area that doesn't get cell phone reception."

             Giles sighed. "Find some place, spread it around. Someplace they could spend a lot of time." He took off his glasses and rubbed his forehead, it had been a long day. "We'll say they'll be returning in a few weeks. We have to find these girls, we have no idea what they're going through."

********

            Buffy paced the length of her room, one hand held her cell phone to her ear, the other irrationally waving a business card. She spent fifteen minutes on with the receptionist of Wolfram and Hart. They were giving her the run around when she was trying to contact Angel. It took her that long to find the business card with his direct number. Now she was waiting for him to pick up. 

            "Angel's Office," She heard a familiar yet non-Angel voice say, "Wesley Wyndham-Price, speaking."

            "Wes, it's me." She said urgently and with worry in her voice.

            "Buffy, what's wrong?"  
            "I need to talk to Angel. Is he there?"

            "Not right now, I'll send someone to find him." She heard him bark orders to someone else. "Is there anything I can do. If you tell me I might be able to help." He said kindly.

            Buffy gave a heavy sigh and spilled the whole story him. 

            "Oh, dear." She heard him whisper. "We'll send people to check on the Slayers in this area and anything else you need us to do." He said hurriedly. She could tell he was moving around, directing people to do things.

            "Anything you can find out about where they have taken the girls-"

            "Of course, I've already started-Angel's here." He cut himself off. 

            "Buffy." Angels concerned voice was now on the other line. Buffy told him quickly what she told Wes. This time said that Dawn was one of the girls taken. "Don't worry we're already on this." Buffy could tell he was holding back something, probably some comment about Riley which she was glad not to hear again. She could hear Wesley in the background.

            "Thank you."

            "No thanks needed. Actually ,Wes's watcher instinct is acting up." He let a moment pass. Dawn will be alright. She's very strong." He tried to assure her.

            "Like that actually ever helps. No matter how capable and strong she is I'm still going to worry. I guess this is how mom always felt about me." She sat down on the bed. 

            "Are you okay right now? I mean of course your not but…"

            "I can handle this, and I'm going to get them back, all of them." She took a deep breath, "I need to get back to everyone else, call me if you find anything?"

            "Of course. Right away. Do you want me to come out there?"

            "No, I need you there." 

            "Alright. I'll be in touch, if I find out anything."

            "We think the house lines are tapped call by cell." She said just as he hung up. She sat there for a moment thinking, she has to do something, if she doesn't she'll think too much, but her mind wandered to Angel. She thought about just her time there and the last time… She jumped up from her seat and went straight for her bag. She couldn't believe she had forgotten about it. 

            Buffy emptied the contents out of her bag onto the bed and swiftly searched through the items.  She found it.  The tracer that Angel had given to her.  She felt so dumb to have forgotten. She picked it up slowly, as if it was to explode.  

            Buffy pressed one of the buttons that said on and the screen lit up.  It was a radar of the area around her.  Buffy smiled and ran down the hall.

*********

            "This way." Xander called to Pike who was following behind him at a fast pace.  The two were carrying a large heavy chest, full of Pike's rifles.  They were walking downstairs to the basement where they keep the weapons.

            Xander took out a set of keys from his pocket and opened the locked door.  Pike followed him in.  Xander turned on the light and Pike looked around the small room in amazement.  

            "Wow," he said calmly.  Pike looked up at the assortment of swords on the wall.

            "Yeah, the council in England gave us all these." Xander picked up an ax that was on a nearby table.  He lifted it and amazed at the light it gave off.

            Pike turned to Xander.  "I prefer guns though, especially if its just humans we are fighting."  Xander helped Pike open the large chest.  Pike picked up an M-16.  "Easier to kill those bastards."  

            Pike had many different rifles and guns.  "How the hell did you get all these?"  Xander asked as he started to hang the guns on the wall.  

            "Lets just say, I'm a great persuader." And Pike left it at that.   

            "One time, I had to steal a rocket launcher from the Army.  Good Times." Xander said, yet he wasn't smiling.

            "Nice," Pike walked over to Xander, patted him on the shoulder.  "Listen, she will be fine.  She's a slayer right?   I'm sure she can handle herself."

            "I know, Sophie is strong.  But I just found her.  I can't lose her now.  Especially after what happened to my last girlfriend. But she can take care of herself. Its not really her I'm worried about, its Dawn."

            Pike sighed, "Yeah, she isn't a slayer either  and a kid. I hope she's still hanging in there. I don't know what Buffy would do if she lost her."  

"Become catatonic." Xander muttered, picked up an AK-47.  "If anyone touches one of those girls, I _will _kill them." He said with absolute certainty.

********

            Willow and Matt seemed to be glued to the computer. They were going nowhere fast. Willow pushed back away for a moment and stretched her arms. Matt went straight for the keyboard that Willow had been hogging all afternoon. She gave him a sigh, he was concentrating so hard he looked like his head was about to explode. 

            "This might work." He said and let his program run, "It might take sometime." 

            "That's okay." She smiled to him. How much had she wished for a hacking partner when she was his age. "I've known Dawn longer than you, she'll be alright, believe me she been through worse."

            "The Hell Goddess." He said finally breaking eye contact with monitor. "She told us all about it. Not everyday you date the Key to the barrier between all dimensions." He sighed, staring off into space worried.

            Willow nodded and lean back into her chair, then her face fell. "You two were dating?" She asked in disbelief, he nodded. "But this school is way to small for that to have stayed secret."

            "We'll the three of us are kind of separated from everyone. We've been together a month, only Evan knows." He got glossy eyed as he continued. "Dawn's great, can always make me laugh…"

            Willow couldn't help but think of herself and Xander and Buffy. She hoped that Evan wasn't crushing on him the way she used to on Xander. But than another thought hit her that stopped all thought on that subject, they were cousins, practically like brother and sister. She was probably happy her best friend was with Matt, than one of the girls she hated. Willow didn't want to think about Dawn right now or the other girls. She had to much to do to constantly have her worry for them, in the front of her mind. It could have been helpful to Matt either. "So when did you get so good with the computer stuff?" 

             "Oh, I don't know, spent a lot of time alone." He sighed.

            "Your Dad worked a lot?" Willow asked her hand supporting her head as she leaned on the table.

            "It wouldn't matter if he did, I was away at school most of the year. Never had too many mates. Either they wanted to know me to get close to my Grandfather or stayed away because they believed I was too odd." He looked away again.

            Willow would have said more but the voices of Evan and Fiona stopped her. "…I mean I should have seen this coming, long before I did." Evan said to Fiona sitting down on the couch. 

            "No one blames you." Fiona sat next to her.

            "You can't see everything." Matt told her. 

            She didn't listen just continued to sulk. 

            "Ah, I'm getting tired." Willow groaned.

            "Your in good company." Ona said getting up. "Take a break. Come with me and get something to eat?" She asked the witch. 

            "Definitely." Willow jumped up.

            "You two?" She asked her children. They shook they're heads no, Matt replied that he would continue working. 

When they left Evan moved into Willow's chair, Matt had gone back to his working position back at the computer. Evan just watched him for a while, a solemn and deep look on her face.

            "What?" he asked her after a minute, not turning to her.

            "Nothing." She said simply not breaking her gaze from him.

            After another minute Matt threw the keyboard down on the desk and turned to her. "What?" she screamed. She could see the fear and pain in his eyes, he was starting to tear up.

            "Sorry." He said her own tears forming, and Evan leaned into him and gave him a hug. He tightened his arms around her. "I miss them so much, I'm so worried about what might have happened. I usually know, but I can't see anything." He gave her a squeeze, it was rare for him to see her like this, when she didn't just have a disturbing vision anyway. She was always the tough one even when they first met when his aunt adopted her.

            "I know, we'll get through this. We're not alone."

            "I know we got each other." She agreed. They continued their embrace.

**_End Chapter 2._**


	3. Chapter Three: Choosing Sides

**_Chapter 3: Choosing Sides_**

            Sophie didn't sleep. She stayed up all night and kept watch over the girls. It wasn't as if she didn't try to sleep. She did, but as much as she tried she was never able to. The rest of the girls were fast asleep without any problems, so she suspected that they are keeping her awake on purpose, trying to make her weaker. Their captures still saw her as the strongest and the one in greater need to be broken. If she had been broken the girls would lose hope. Sophie thought back to her slayer training with Mr. Giles, Rupert's father. She had been forced to stay awake much longer than this, for endurance. She was doing fine, in fact.  Except for her grumbling stomach and desperate need for a shower.  When she had gotten to the point of offending herself she changed out of her pajamas and into the provided scrubs. At least she'd be wearing something clean, she thought. She felt a pang in her heart after she had changed. She feared after more and more time she would just be doing everything they want her to. The first step was to look the way they wanted her to look, just like another test subject. 

Dawn still stayed the same.  No improvement.  Sophia feared the worst for her unless something happened to help her. 

            Sophia stared at the door, her eyes were becoming unfocused but it didn't matter, she was listening. She could hear the faint beep of a keycard outside the block and movements of the guards. As the door opened she felt herself ready to react. 

            If only they would come for her and opened her cell, she would spring in the air and fight her way out taking a weapon from one of the guards. She'd lock them in her cell and released the other girls. She would get them out of here…

            But doctors passed her by, didn't even give her a glance. They went for Penny, again. Sophie could even go to the door anymore. Since her attempt yesterday, they turned electric filed in her cell when they were entering the area. She swore during the night that she heard the girls screaming but she could not be certain. She felt the eerie calm was playing tricks on her. 

            She turned her attention back to Dawn, yet again. She had trouble keeping her concentration, and found Dawn's monitor to become very hypnotizing. She desperately wanted to fall asleep. She sat back on her bed, leaning her back against the cell wall, hugging her knees to her chest, she could have been that way for hours and not be aware of the passing of time. She was finally broken out of her trance when there was a commotion at the security station outside the block. 

            Someone was yelling. Sophie got up and moved to the other wall moving as close to the door as she dared. She could see the security station from the spot in her cell. She strained to see more. A young soldier; brown hair, tall; was the cause of the commotion. His face was tense with anger and was yelling at another officer, a woman. Sophie was fascinated with him, besides her girls, he was the only one she had seen in this place with any passion. Something about this was personal to him. He was demanding entrance to the cell block. With a heavy sigh, the woman; his CO, Sophie assumed; ordered the guards to allow him in. Sophie instinctively jumped back in time to miss getting hit by the electric field.

            Even before the door had completely opened the man was through it. He did not have far to go and stopped at Dawn's cell door. "Damn it!" he said hitting the glass and then turned back to his CO. "You grabbed the wrong girl! Open this door now!"  
            His CO reluctantly open the door for him and he was at Dawn's side in an instant. _He knows her,_ was the only thing Sophie could think of, _thank the powers_....

Riley Finn looked down at Dawn's pale face and stroked her cheek. "It's gonna be alright, we're gonna take care of you." He whispered softly to her. "Sam, we need to get her to the infirmary now!" The women hesitated but Riley stood up. "Now!" he screamed. 

            "Riley, calm down." She ordered him.

"Calm down? Why should I calm down? You screwed up! You grabbed the wrong girl. Buffy will not stop until she finds Dawn. We're not gonna be able to stop them." The woman didn't say anything just glared at him. "The other one already died, if she dies-," He pointed to Dawn, "I will never forgive you." 

Sam gave the order for Dawn to be moved to the infirmary. As they were preparing to move her out, Riley stepped back almost leaning on Sophie's cell door. "Who was it?"

"What?" He said startled turning around to face the woman in the cell. 

"Who died?" she asked softly. He just looked at her. "I need to know," she said gaining more strength.

"Um…I don't know her name." He said letting his guilt be evident. 

"Was she Dawn's age?" She asked attempting to hold back all emotion, her body was tense with dread. She didn't look at him either, she was trying to remain concentrating by staring into space.

"No, older, thirties." He said and he noticed relief flash over her.

"Bridget." She said grimly.

"I'm sorry." Riley said turning back to watch Dawn be taken out.

"What are you going to be able to do for her?"

Riley turned back and shook his head. "I don't'…"

"Did you get the serum from the Council?" She asked quickly.

Sam was now at Riley's side and answered for him. "Yes."

"I can help." She said finally looking at them. "I used to be a watcher. I know all about it, I can help." She explained.

Riley and Sam began to argue softy, finally Riley won out. Sam was going to allow Sophie to leave her cell and help, but she would have to be bound and chained. Sophie agreed and waited for Sam Finn to get Johansson for approval. As Johansson and the Finns along with an escort of four guards escorted her to the infirmary. Johansson had keep to her side as they walked. "You know, if you start any trouble, that little one, -Penny, is gonna get it." He whispered to her as they walked.

************

            Pike walked out of the bathroom wearing a towel around his waist.  He saw Buffy sitting at the end of the bed, staring down at the floor.  She hadn't moved since he went in the bathroom.  Her lip was pursed in a frown.  She looked angry and sad at the same time.  Pike walked up to her and lifted her head with his hand.    
            "We are gonna get them," he said softly.  Buffy's expression didn't change, she just looked up with him with swollen eyes.  

            Finally she spoke, "Why," she hesitated, then her tone rose, "Why are we just sitting here, doing nothing?" Buffy moved her head out of his hand.  Pike sighed and went to his dresser and got dressed.  

            As Pike was putting on clothes, he said,  "Summers, we have to find out where to look first.  Take it from me, I know what I am doing.  I don't want anyone hurt, going in blindly."

            Buffy flashed back to the vineyard massacre.  She shook her head and wiped a tear from her face.  "You're right."

            Pike pulled his shirt over his head and sat down next to his girlfriend.  "So this friend of yours.  How's he supposed to help?"

            "He works for a law firm in LA.  He knows stuff." She said.

            "Great, another bloodsucking laywer." Pike smiled.  Buffy glared at him.    
            "Something like that." She smiled.  Pike kissed her on the cheek and stood up from the bed. 

            "I'm gonna get something to eat, want to come?" he lent out his hand.  Buffy thought about it and let him help her up. 

            As the two came down the stairs and into the dinning hall, Faith briskly walked up to Buffy. "B, its for you," she said handing her the telephone.  "Its Angel."

            A few slayers, Giles, Fiona, and Xander came around Buffy, who raised the phone to her ear.

            "Hey," she said.  Everyone was in anticipation, a strange silence blew over the school.  Buffy's expression was confused as she was listening to Angel.   "Great," she said.   " . . . . Will do. Thanks a lot Angel."  Buffy turned off the phone and smiled. "I know where they are."  
  
  
            Xander, Pike, Faith, Robin and few slayer students carried firearms and weapons up from the basement.  They lined up the guns, crossbows, and axes on the large table in the dinning hall.  

            "So, you've heard of this military base?" Xander asked Pike as he placed down an AK-47.    
            "Yeah, I've been there a few times, weird place.  Appalachian mountains are only about an hour away.  We're lucky."  Pike said, he turned to Faith.

Faith crossed her arms, "Ooh, feels all to familiar," she said looking at the weapons.  Xander replied, "Yeah well at least its not the end of the world this time."

            Buffy came in and stopped at the site of the weapons.  She held up the slayer locating device.  "This is it." She said.            

            Giles followed behind her.  "Now all we have to do is wait for the field slayers to come."   
            Buffy looked at the screen, "They are already here."

            Buffy walked to the front door and opened it as a van pulled up the driveway.  She stepped out in the mid day cold air.  The van stopped, and the doors opened.  Nine girls came out of the car and started to walk up the sidewalk.  Buffy recognized the leading lady, Jenny.  Buffy ran up to her and hugged her tightly. "I'm so glad you're here." Buffy told her.

            Fiona greeted the others slayers the same way and they all expressed concerns for Sophie. Buffy let herself wonder if maybe Fiona would take command, but as all the new arrivals greeted her, they pledged they're allegiance to her. But of course they would, they maybe older than her but she had been a Slayer much longer and that's what counted to them.

            They lead the new arrivals into the school. They had each been assigned a place to stay and brought they're bags to they're rooms. Four of the slayers would be staying behind to protect the school and five would be coming along for the rescue.

            The group knew they would embark at dawn, but for now they needed to work on the battle plan. At about nine o'clock pm, the entire crew meet in the staff hall lounge.  

            Fiona left her room and walked out into the hall lounge for the conference. She saw Evan and Matt sitting one of the couches. "What do you think you are doing?" she asked, "You aren't coming."

            Evan spoke up, "Willow said we should, our abilities would probably do you guys some good." She smiled. "You know me and my insidious nature."

Fiona took in a deep nervous breath. "Fine," she then looked over at Matt. "What's your ability?"

"Security," a grin spread from ear to ear.  Fiona just rolled her eyes and took a seat next to Giles. She wouldn't stop them from going. They were to useful, she could only hope they stayed safe. 

Once they were all there, Buffy took the stand as leader once again.  She hated being the lead slayer, but did it anyway, still wondering if she could ask someone else to take over for her. Buffy stood in the center, circled by slayers and civilians. They're was only one slayer student in the hallway, Vi. She was the only student allowed to go. They had all wanted to for the most part, but they were minors and the Slayers they wanted to protect in the first place. Vi was allowed to come along because of her experience and understanding from her parents that understood what being a slayer meant and she would have to do what her duty demanded of her.

Buffy sighed.  "Here we go again gang."  She began discussing plans and procedures.  "The base is somewhere in the Appalachian Mountains.  That's not too far from here.  We will find them using this," she showed the locater device.  Then she went on with the basic jobs of entering the base. "Tomorrow morning, we get ready and get on the bus." She mentioned the school bus they used in Sunnydale to escape.

"Xander, Pike, so we don't waste time, equip everyone now.  These are humans we are dealing with, not demons nor vampires. – Hopefully.  Remember, disarm, shoot to hurt, not to kill.  Unless you have a good enough reason to do so." Buffy looked over at Pike.  He nodded and he and Xander lead the crew into the dinning hall where the weapons were.   
            The slayers and civilians picked up there desired weapons.  Not a sound in the entire room.  Matt and Evan picked up a sword and crossbow.  Fiona walked up beside them and picked up a crossbow as well.  "A sword?" Fiona asked her nephew.

"I preferred them." He said testing the weight in his hands. "And I always loved fencing."

Evan paused as she practiced loading her crossbow. "Did it occur to you guys that if we get caught we get charge with espionage?"

On the other side of the table, Pike handed an empty handed Willow a gun.  She smiled, "No need," and handed it back.  Pike gave her a questionable look.  Willow raised her hands and said "These are my weapons."

"Ok, your funeral," he said laughing.  He underestimated her, which Willow was okay with.  

After everyone had weapons, Buffy spoke up again, "Teams, there will be two, one led by me, another by Faith.  On mine: Pike, Xander, Willow, Giles, Jenny, and Rose.  Faith's: Fiona, Robin, Vi, Onika, Teri, and Katie.  I think that's it for tonight.  Try to get as much sleep as possible, you will need the energy." Buffy looked at everyone and said, "Goodnight all." And everyone left in all different directions to find there rooms.   

Pike hugged Buffy tight, she closed her eyes, as she was held tight to his chest.  Pike gave her a kiss on the top of the head.  Pike walked with Buffy who was holding onto his waist upstairs into their bedroom. 

********************************

            The door to the room of the infirmary was locked from the outside. There was only one door leading in and out of the room, and outside that door were three guards. The fourth guard was stationed inside the room. Riley hovered near-by. It's not like Sophia would be able to go anywhere anyway. She had wrist and ankle chains and been locked to a place near Dawn's bed. 

            Now all they could do was wait. Sophie had given orders to the medic of what to give Dawn to clean out her system, they just needed to wait to see if it had any effect. Sophie was exhausted, they had made her stand in the private infirmary and now her legs were barely able to support her weight. There was an empty chair at the end of Dawn's bed, Sophie internally shrugged and reached out for it. 

            The chair was just out of reach. As she reached for it she knocked it to the cement floor with a loud bang. Sophie fell right after it. The guard in the private infirmary room, Sgt. Tanner, immediately pointed her weapon at Sophie. Riley quickly rushed in to aid Sophie. He helped her up and Sophie spoke with a heavy yawn, "I just wanted to sit down." She was using Riley as her only support. 

            "Oh, sorry." Riley said, playing the gentleman. He got her the chair and helped her to sit down. Sophie didn't bother to say thank you. Once she was situated, the guard returned to ready position and Riley went back to the other side of Dawn's bed and sat down in the other chair.

            They sat in silence for a few minutes before Sophie decided to speak. "How do you know Dawn?" She finally asked him. She had been wanting to for hours.

            "Her sister." He said after a long time. "We dated."

            "Oh." Was all she could say. "How long?"

            "A year more or less."

            "And you would do this to her little sister?" She said, surprising him. Her tone had become so much darker in only a few moments. 

            "I didn't." he defended himself. "She…" He faded out, trying to hide his anger that was so near to his surface. 

            "Well you seem to have a certain power with the C.O. your blaming. So I think you may have had the power to stop this."

            "I didn't!" he said coldly. 

            Sophie quickly turned the conversation. "What are you trying to accomplish here?"

            "I don't know, not my department." Riley sighed. "Sam- Major Finn was in charge of the extraction, Johannson is in charge of the Slayers now."

            Sophie looked down at Dawn. "She nearly died you know, and Bridget's death won't go unnoticed either."

            "I know." He said once again staring down at Dawn's face. Her face was not as pale as when he first showed her. Since the medic had given her the correct drugs, the color had returned. He absentmindedly touched her cheek. 

            "You can't let this go on." Sophie warned him.

            "I have no say in it." Riley said distantly. 

            "Her name was Finn, right." She stated instead of asked. Riley didn't respond. "Your wife."

            "What?" he looked up confused.

            "I supposed she could be your sister." Sophie said not changing her belief. 

            "How did you know she was my wife."

            "So I'm right." Sophie gave him the non-answer.

            "Yeah." Silence overtook the room once more.

            "You need to help us." She said attempting to manipulate his feelings. She said it casually as fact, leaning back in the chair and closing her eyes. "It's the only way you'll feel better about all this."

            "I can't." He said stepping away from Dawn. "I can't." he repeated as he quickly made his way out of the room.

**_End chapter three._**


	4. Chapter Four: End of the World Tour

Chapter 4: End of World Tour

            Sophie was slumped over Dawn's bed. She wasn't sure how long ago Riley had left but she felt that she might actually be able to sleep. It would have been much easier if the Sergeant wasn't always staring at her. They're was something weird about Tanner but she was to tired to worry about it. She knew it was close, her mind began to drift into waking dreams. She was back at the school in her own bed with Xander holding her. But they were over quickly and she realized she was still kidnapped. Just as she felt herself fall back into the dream world a voice snapped her out if it. 

            "Ev?" Dawn called out softy.

            "No, Dawn, it's Sophie." She said raising her head. 

            "Oh." She said, her eyes still closed. "I had the strangest dream…" she opened her eyes. "Oh my god." She started to get up quickly and take in all of her surroundings but Sophie held her back. Dawn looked down at her bound arms. "Oh."

            "It's okay, Dawnie." She said, and did her best to have her lay back down. Sgt. Tanner knocked on the door and told the other guards that Dawn had woke up.  Dawn laid back down in the bed. "How are you feeling?"

            "I feel like I have the flu or something." Dawn felt her own head. "I think I'm warm but it can't tell."

Sophie tried to feel Dawn's head as well but was not able to with her bindings. "It's normal to have a temperature with what we gave you." Sophie said giving her a smile to make her feel safe. 

"I…I remember someone being here." Dawn said confused. "Someone I knew…" She was talking mostly to herself.

"Riley Finn."

"Yeah," she said distantly, then she focus and turned to Sophie, "He was here!"

"Yeah." Sophie told her what had happened. Everything that she knew, even about Bridget.

Dawn just stayed quiet for a few moments. "Why her and not me?" 

"I don't know." Sophie said honestly. "It could have been many factors. Bridget is-was older, you were in better shape…"

"Could it be that I've been exposed to it before?"

"It's possible… Exposed to the serum when?" Sophie was shocked.

"Remember…" Dawn said quietly. "I was made out of Buffy's blood." She whispered. "After her eighteenth birthday."

"Oh, well that's never happened before."  Sophie said frankly.

After a short period of time, they were escorted back to the cell block. Because of her good behavior in the infirmary, Sophie was once again allowed to visit with the girls. The Slayers where in much better spirits. Having Dawn coming back healthy and full of hope that Buffy would find them in no time, seemed to bring a new hope to the otherwise depressed girls.

However Rhona was absent from the group as well as a few others. Just as everyone was becoming settled, Johansson and a couple of guards came in. Sophie was ordered back to her cell and was locked in. When they stopped at Dawn's cell, Sophie felt her heart sink.

"What do you want?" Dawn quipped. "Here to let me go?" She stood in the middle of her cell with her arms crossed across her chest.

"No, Miss Summers, we are here to inform you that we no longer you believe you're a Slayer." Johansson said in a way to jovial tone.

"Anyone here could have told you that." She huffed. "So what now? You'd have to let me go now."

"Oh, we were considering it but that was when we found out something else about you that made you much more interesting to us." He opened the door and the guards when in to grab her arms. Dawn tired to fight them off, managing to kick one of the guards in the balls and punch the other in the eye. The Slayers where cheering her on. With all of her struggling, it didn't matter because she was out numbered. She was dragged out kicking and screaming.

---

Willow didn't sleep at all.  She lay in her bed reading a James Patterson novel.  She hoped to fall asleep, but found that she couldn't.  Willow sighed and pulled the covers off and pulled on her robe.  Underneath the robe, she wore a long nightgown, a pale pearl color.  She remembered when her bedtime fashion was rubber ducky pajamas, which wasn't too long ago.  Willow wanted to dress more adult, she was a serious woman now.  Her mousy days were over, no more shy little Willow.  Willow walked out into the hall. The staff hall was silent as she barefooted down the stairs and into the foyer.  She looked around to make sure no one spotted her.  She wanted to be alone.

            Willow opened the front door and stepped outside.  It was three am and the night air was cool, but not cold.  The snow had melted, but she knew more was to come.  Willow heard a faint cough and looked around.  She walked down the cement steps and saw Evan smoking a cigarette sitting on a canopied swing bench.  

            "Evan?"  Willow called out to her quietly.  

Evan quickly threw her cigarette away, without putting it out.  She turned to Willow.  "Oh, hey Willow."

            Willow cautiously looked at her.  "Were you smoking?" she took a seat next to her.

            Evan laughed.  "Are you kidding?  Of course not!  Bad, . . . bad thing to do." She muttered.

            Willow smiled, "Hon, I'm a Witch, you can't fool a witch."  Evan blinked at her confused.  "Okay, okay, you got me, I saw the smoke before I sat down."

            "I'm sorry, I just—It helps ease my headaches." Evan replied looking down at the floor.  

"Hey, I have no problem with your decision to smoke, your seventeen right?" Willow asked.              

Evan smiled, "Actually, I'm 19."  She took out another cigarette from her purse. "Do you mind?" she asked.

"Oh, not at all.  Hey you're legal too." Willow smirked at the younger brunette.

Evan playfully rolled her eyes at her and shook her head.  

"Crap, I swear, I didn't mean it like that." Willow nervously played with her hands.  After a silent awkward moment, Willow said.  "So, tell me more about your headaches?"

Evan looked up at her teacher.  "They are pretty bad.  Sometimes the pain is so bad, I can't feel anything else going on around me.  Sometimes, I'll even get a huge bloody nose."  She dragged on her cigarette.  

Willow, interested asked her another question.  "I wonder if you are actually a seer from the powers that be?"  she hesitated, then said to herself, "I thought there was already one?"  

"I really have no idea, all I know is that they hurt, and it sucks."  Evan replied, she massaged her temples.             

"Its probably because you are just human, I had a friend who had visions, she almost—" she stopped herself.  She didn't want to scare her.  "Well, her case is different then yours."

"Where is she now?" Evan asked.  "Maybe she can teach me how to control them?"

"I don't think that's possible . . ." Willow sighed.  She thought of Cordelia.

"How come, is she—, Oh God, is she dead?"

"Oh no, she's, well, in a coma?" Willow said afraid of Evan's reaction.  Evan's eyes watered as she stared at Willow.  Evan quickly got up and walked away from Willow.  "Wait! She's not in a coma because—."  It was too late, Evan had already left.  

Willow sighed and fell back in the swing, which swung fast as she slumped in it.  "Just great, another gift, effecting a normal human being."  She fell asleep.  

            Dawn slowly approached, and Willow awoke.  She remembered where she was, outside.  She made her way into the building and was almost trampled by Xander and Pike.  "Where have you been?" Xander asked.

            Willow sighed, "Very long, interesting night.  Going to get dressed and get packed." She said as she darted up the stairs.  Xander and Pike entered the dinning hall, which they saw everyone was ready to go.   Pike didn't see Buffy in sight though.  Pike walked over to Giles who was speaking to Fiona.  

            "Giles, where's Buffy?"  he asked.  Giles looked around the room, slayer's talking amongst themselves.  

            "I haven't seen her all morning." He said, also concerned.  

            "When I woke up, she wasn't in the bedroom, I thought maybe she would have been with Willow or something." Pike wrestled his duffle bag over his shoulder.

            "Buffy's been rather strange as of late, off by herself a lot," Giles hesitated, "Or with you."

            A few minutes later Willow came down the stairs carrying a large heavy bag, and almost fell into Faith who was holding a very long sword.  Faith smiled at the Wiccan as Robin came up behind the girls, and guided Faith outside.  

            Faith called from outside, "Hey everyone! Buffy is pulling up with the bus!"

            Everyone slowly made their way outside, and saw Buffy sitting in the driver's seat.  She had been ready for quite sometime.  

            Faith and Robin entered the bus followed by Willow and Xander, then the rest of the team.  Pike was last to get on.  

            Buffy let Jenny take the wheel and Buffy went to sit with Pike in the first three-seater.  The engine roared up and they left the mansion's premises.

            "When did you go out to the bus?" Pike asked Buffy. 

            "Around four thirty or so.  Couldn't sleep, decided to get ready and get on the bus.  I was able to sleep in here." She said.  Buffy sighed and opened her classic slay-bag she carried and took out the locater.  "I sure hope this helps."

            She leaned onto Pikes shoulder as she looked around the bus. Her mind flashed to their long drive to New York. Well not really New York, they weren't sure where they were going at first. The bus had been overfilled with everybody's stuff and reeked of victory and morning. Now it was thick with tension. They didn't know what to expect. She just knew she needed to save Dawn.  She felt even a little selfish that she didn't care as much about the other girls, but she couldn't help it.  

Buffy looked around at her soldiers. She saw Willow testing her power, levitating one of Xander's weapons. Xander seemed amused. Evan was still asleep, slumped over Matt's shoulder. Giles was staring out the window, distant.   Fiona seemed to playing mayor with 'Sisterhood Slayers'. Buffy closed her eyes and snuggled into Pike some more. Maybe if she wished real hard this wouldn't be happening.

********

Dawn was led through many corridors she would never remember. She tried counting the turns and doors but they were all the same and she quickly lost count. They stopped in front of a set of lab doors. "Small Lab 6". They entered they're key cards and codes and the doors opened. It was a small lab, like it was named. Unlike the separate cells in the Slayer block, this had 4 clear cells lining the walls. The cells were darkened now and she could see who was inside them. It must be nighttime, Dawn thought distantly. She was distracted when she realized the lab space was in the middle of the room.

She felt sick when she realized she would see what they do to the others in the cells. She was lead to one of the middle cells. She stumbled in the dark to find the cot. By the time she got herself in a comfortable sitting spot, she called out into the darkness. "Is anyone else here?" She said trying to look at the equipment in the lab space. She didn't want to think about what that was there for. "Anyone?" she asked again hoping.

"Dawn?" a surprising voice answered.

---

"Riley," Sam stopped Riley walking past her in the hallway.  Riley turned to her.  

"What is it?" he said, his tone low, disgusted with himself.   Sam could see sweat dripping off of his brow.

"General Lee wants to see you.  He says it's urgent." She tilted her head down towards the grown, refraining from looking at her husband in the face.

Riley hesitated, then slowly, without saying a word, walked away from her.  He stopped in front of the main entrance to the cellblocks.  He wanted so badly to go in there and let them all go.  He'd be a dead man, if he ever did so much as put a finger on the security desk.

He continued to the office, where his boss, General Lee hid from the entire operation.  Riley slowly knocked on the door, a faint "Come in," welcomed him.  Riley opened the door; General Lee's chair was turned, his back facing Riley.  

"You wanted to see me Sir?" Riley stood straight, just like he's always been taught.  He knew this wasn't going to be good.

"Yes Agent Finn," he turned.  Lee had jet-black hair, not a stray of gray in his pin-straight hair, even though he was well past fifty.  The Korean General stood, and Riley saluted him.  "I've been hearing some disturbing news about your position in this operation, Agent.  Your are somewhat attached to these human-hybrids?"

Riley closed his eyes, "Slayers, Sir."

"Ah yes, the Slayer, or now it seems, slayers.  They are incredible aren't they?"  Lee said.  His eyes looked corrupt.

Riley didn't answer; he just stared at his Predecessor.  His nose flared, what he wouldn't give, just to reach over the desk he was standing behind, and strangle him.

"Oh, don't tell me you don't know, word is, is that you used to work for one." He laughed.  "The one that gave us all that trouble in our prior operation.  I guess that cute little blonde was right, though, we can't control wild animals.  But we can control easily manipulative teenage girls." Lee smiled.  

Riley snapped and pulled a gun and pointed it at the Generals face.  "Stop this now."   Lee continued to smirk.

"Ah hem," Lee cleared his throat.  "Look behind you."

Riley slowly turned, gun still in position.  Then, he suddenly dropped the gun to the floor.  What he saw almost made him cry. His sister.  Carolyn Finn stood, her brown hair, tied in a pony-tail.  She was about fourteen years old.  Her face pale, eyes full of death.  She had been here for a few weeks.  Completely brainwashed.  

"She's--she's a slayer?" Riley stuttered, gasping at what he was seeing.

"Surprise." Lee replied, then clapped his hands. Carolyn Finn somersaulted in the air and kicked her older brother in the back, causing him to fall face first.  Riley turned to his sister, standing above him.  

            She didn't say a word, she grabbed his shirt and threw him into a filing cabinet.  Riley stumbled to get up.  He couldn't fight his own sister.  Carolyn punched him in the face hard.  Riley felt the bruise with his hands, and noticed his face was drenched in tears.  

            "Alright!" he cried to Lee.  "Alright!  Stop this!"

            Lee came up behind Carolyn and placed his hand on her shoulder.  She walked out of the room silently.  "I can stop this.  Well, for Little Ms Finn anyway."  

            "Do it," Riley said, his eyes swollen and red.  

            "Under one condition,"  There was a long pause, Riley waiting for an answer.  "You must continue here, and do what you are told.  And I mean everything."  Lee stated clearly.  "And then, your sister will be released."

            "If I don't?"  Riley asked.  Afraid to hear the answer.

            "She will die, so will that 'Key', then so will you."  Lee crossed his arms.  He had him.  Riley just nodded his head.

**End Chapter Four.**


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